Posted!

Join the Conversation

Comments

Welcome to our new and improved comments, which are for subscribers only.
This is a test to see whether we can improve the experience for you.
You do not need a Facebook profile to participate.

You will need to register before adding a comment.
Typed comments will be lost if you are not logged in.

Please be polite.
It's OK to disagree with someone's ideas, but personal attacks, insults, threats, hate speech, advocating violence and other violations can result in a ban.
If you see comments in violation of our community guidelines, please report them.

Kim Greene, chairman of Planned Parenthood of Indiana and Kentucky and Karen Johnson-McKewan, a lawyer for the organization spoke outside the federal courthouse Friday following a trial to challenge to how the state licenses abortion clinics.(Photo: DeborahYetter)

A federal judge has ordered Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin's office to pay Planned Parenthood's lawyers after no one showed up for a deposition in a federal lawsuit over the organization's effort to get a license to provide abortions in Louisville.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Dave Whalin on Monday ordered Bevin's office to reimburse lawyers for Planned Parenthood of Indiana and Kentucky for their legal fees and travel costs from San Francisco for an Aug. 18 deposition.

Kim Greene, chairwoman of Planned Parenthood, said her organization was pleased by the judge's decision to grant its request for sanctions against Bevin's office over the missed deposition.

"The reimbursement will be helpful," she said.

But Bevin spokeswoman Amanda Stamper said the administration was "surprised and disappointed in the decision," saying the governor's office had taken appropriate legal steps to notify Planned Parenthood that it objected to the deposition and would not be attending.

"We intend to appeal the ruling to the District Court as soon as possible," Stamper said.

The lawyers were seeking to question Bevin or someone from his office about events surrounding his administration's decision to deny Planned Parenthood a license to provide abortions.

But after some legal skirmishing, no one appeared from the Bevin administration after lawyers had traveled from San Francisco to conduct the deposition, which was rescheduled, the order said.

Whalin's order said Bevin waited too long to object to the deposition and failed to "clearly communicate the intent not to appear."

Whalin's order doesn't specify an amount but asks Planned Parenthood to submit its expenses to him by Nov. 21.

The legal battle is part of a larger case in which EMW Women's Surgical Center of Louisville, the state's only abortion provider, and Planned Parenthood have gone to federal court seeking to strike down a state law they say the Bevin administration is using to block their abortion clinic licenses.

The Bevin administration is seeking to revoke EMW's license.

The dispute involves agreements that state law says abortion clinics must have with hospitals and ambulance services for patients in the event of an emergency.

Bevin's administration refused to accept such agreements Planned Parenthood provided with its license application, saying they were inadequate. And in March, the administration sought to revoke EMW's license, claiming it lacked an adequate agreement with a hospital.

Both EMW and Planned Parenthood argued the administration of Bevin, an anti-abortion Republican, was using the requirement for agreements to obstruct their efforts to obtain licenses to provide abortions. They further argued the administration was pressuring local hospitals not to enter into such agreements.

The Bevin administration denied those allegations and said it is simply enforcing the requirement for hospital and ambulance agreements for the health and safety of patients.

Planned Parenthood and EMW are asking to have the state law requiring such agreements struck down as an unconstitutional barrier to abortion.

The case went to trial in September. U.S, District Judge Greg Stivers has not yet ruled in the abortion case.

Contact reporter Deborah Yetter at 502-582-4228 or at dyetter@courier-journal.com.